Sullivan calls Murray 'an option' for Game 3

NEW YORK -- It's looking like Jeff Zatkoff again.

Or is it?

The Penguins took to the Madison Square Garden ice on Tuesday for their morning skate in advance of Game 3 of their Stanley Cup playoff series with the Rangers, and the only goaltender who stayed off was Marc-Andre Fleury, still not cleared from his concussion. That pointed powerfully to Zatkoff again being the starter.

Zatkoff, Tristan Jarry and, for the first time in the playoffs, Matt Murray, were the only goaltenders in the skate. But Murray has had one full practice since he was struck in the head in the regular-season finale at Philadelphia and, for what it's worth, was sporting a brand new glove, something a goaltender would never break in on a game day. Jarry, of course, has yet to play a minute in the NHL.

When the skate was done, Zatkoff was first off the ice, yet another indicator.

Or was it?

Mike Sullivan, who's employed extensive gamesmanship regarding his lineup in this series, called Murray "an option tonight" and ruled out Fleury. He went no further on that subject. Fleury, by the way, did make the trip and was at Madison Square Garden this morning.





It's no longer clear whether this means anything, either, but Justin Schultz was among the last defensemen off the ice, while Olli Maatta came off with the first wave. In a normal setting, this would indicate Maatta will play and Schultz will not. We'll see.

The skate was optional, and those who stayed off the ice were Sidney Crosby, Phil Kessel, Kris Letang, Chris Kunitz and Nick Bonino. No lines or pairings were evident in the drills. Zatkoff and Murray got most of the goaltending work.

The cramped locker room, packed with cameras and microphones in all corners, was a bit of a tightly wound place. No laughing, no joking, but for a couple of exceptions.

I asked Evgeni Malkin, as he came off the ice, how he'd been sleeping. (I ask that a lot.)

"Never good sleep when you lose," he replied.

I asked the same of Ian Cole.

"Nine and a half hours, baby," came his version. "I am so going to be flying out there."

Malkin was supposed to speak at practice yesterday but declined. However, he said that he would speak before today's game. This was noteworthy simply because, in his 10-season career, Malkin has never spoken with the media on the morning of a game.

He was a man of his word:



Conor Sheary seems a little more comfortable with the idea of skating on a line with Malkin. He admitted that playing with Malkin for the first time, in Game 2, was something of an adventure. Sheary believes things will go better tonight, especially if the line actually remains intact throughout the contest, something that didn't happen in Game 2.

"Every game, every practice, you get more chemistry no matter who it is," Sheary said. "Last game, we only had five or six shifts all night. I'm hoping it will be a little more set in stone tonight."

On the other side, the Rangers aren't ruling out that they could have their best defenseman, Ryan McDonagh, back for Game 3. Alain Vigneault, New York's coach, said at his morning skate press conference that McDonagh will be evaluated this afternoon by doctors and, if cleared, could play. McDonagh has missed the series to date because of a hand injury.

More to come from the locker room from me, Josh Yohe and Jared Wickerham. But I'll leave you with this gallery of Jared's stuff from this morning: